


How Can a Moment Last Forever?

by Janie94, Varia (Janie94)



Category: Bollywood Movies, Kalank (2019)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fix-It, Fix-It of Sorts, Post-Canon, Romance, Unresolved Emotional Tension, Varia - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-24 14:00:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18572941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Janie94/pseuds/Janie94, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Janie94/pseuds/Varia
Summary: Roop’s heart had been hearing him for many, many years - ever since that fateful day when her world had gone up in flames. But this time something was different, this time she was able to follow her beloved into the unknown.





	How Can a Moment Last Forever?

**Author's Note:**

> I watched 'Kalank' last Friday in the cinema in Munich and was completely blown away by this beautiful, tragic film.  
> Varun and Alia played their characters so well that my heart ached and I knew I needed to write something for them.  
> This story isn't much, it is merely an extension of the epilogue that we got or rather everyone dressed in white made me think of Heaven, so this happened.  
> This is me dealing with the beauty of this movie, I really hope others will be able to appreciate it.

 

 

**How Can a Moment Last Forever?**

 

 _He_ was calling for her.

Roop’s heart had been hearing him for many, many years - ever since that fateful day when her world had gone up in flames. But this time something was different, this time she was able to follow her beloved into the unknown.

Dying was much more peaceful than she had imagined. One moment she was falling into a dream and then suddenly the ground beneath her seemed to slip and she was falling again, this time without ever reaching the ground.

She couldn’t tell how long she was falling – minutes, hours or maybe even years. Time seemed strangely detached until she was finally able to open her eyes.

And all she saw was white. Blinding, white light.

It took a while for her to focus and adjust but eventually she realized that she was standing in a large, round room. It was familiar but alien at the same time. Roop could still remember the intricate ornaments adorning the tiles on the floor but when she looked outside the large windows, there was nothing but whiteness again. There should have been the busy noises of the streets, there should have been buildings. Yet there was nothing but light.

“Finally you are here.”

Roop hurled around at the familiar voice and her eyes widened when she came face to face with her former teacher Bahaar Begum. The woman was smiling gently, nothing but warmth in her eyes. She was dressed in a white salwar and she didn’t look a day older than when Roop had last seen her all these years ago.

“How is this possible?” she couldn’t help but ask even when she carefully approached the older woman.

Bahaar’s eyes clouded with sorrow. “You died, my child. You left behind all that you knew to live a life free of worries. You earned that.”

“I died?” Roop repeated. She should probably be more agitated by the news than she felt right now, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. She had lived a long and fulfilling life and she was tired. Coming here just felt like the last adventure she was tackling.

Slowly Roop reached down for Bahaar’s naked feet to greet her properly before she finally dared to ask. “How come that you are here with me? We barely knew each other for a year.”

Bahaar didn’t seem offended. “And yet this seemed to be the time in your life that you were most happy. I wouldn’t be here if your heart didn’t want me to.”

She was right. Roop was glad to see her and she didn’t want Bahaar to leave again. “And what happens now?”

Bahaar touched her cheek gently- “Now you have to make a choice. Whether you want to be with your husband again or my son.”

Roop stilled. She had never had that choice, life had cruelly robbed her of it in _that_ night. Back then she would have chosen Zafar without second thought. Because he was the man who would forever hold her heart. Her feelings hadn’t changed but she had come to love her husband too, in a very different way.

Zafar had ignited a storm of love and passion in her heart and when Roop saw him die such a gruesome death, it felt like that storm was tearing her apart.

It was Dev who had dried her tears and offered her comfort. It was Dev who had calmed the storm and given her heart shelter. Her love for Dev had come slowly but steadily, born out of their shared pain of losing their lovers much too soon. It was a deep friendship and trust that had allowed love to blossom between them.

And even though Roop’s heart was burning with longing for her Zafar, she couldn’t just turn her back on the man who had become her closest friend.

“Where is Dev?” she asked.

Bahaar’s gaze intensified as though she was trying to decipher Roop’s intentions. Then she pointed towards the front door. “If you wish to see him, then walk through this door and you will be with him.”

Roop nodded. “Will you still be here when I will come back?”

The other woman laughed. “You do not need to worry, _beti._ If it is your heart’s desire to see me, then I will be there.”

Roop thought about her words carefully. “So I can be with anyone I want to be with?” At Bahaar’s quick nod, she inquired, “Then how come you are all alone here?”

Bahaar shook her head. “I’m not usually alone. My loved ones are always with me but I had to meet you alone first. You wish to settle your heart’s troubles first before you can decide where your home is.”

Only then did Roop realize that it was the truth. Being with the woman she had admired ever since first hearing her beautiful voice was calming her anxious heart but she was not ready yet so see anyone else. Not before talking with Dev. “Your loved ones?” she repeated curiously.

Bahaar smiled. “My favorite students are here with me as is my son.”

The mention of Zafar made Roop’s heart do an excited flip and she was almost tempted to change her mind and go to him first, just to confirm that it was true and he was actually here. But she couldn’t, not before making this right.

Loving her had cost him his life, so he deserved to finally have her completely, with no strings attached.

Roop forced herself to push the thought of Zafar away for now and focus on his mother. “What about _baba_? If the afterlife means you can live in your happiest memory forever, then wouldn’t you want to be with him.”

Bahaar smiled but it was a wistful one. “My own and Balraj’s feelings for each other were not as pure as the ones you and Zafar feel for each other. I loved him madly but it was a mistake. I realized that when I lost everything. Him and our son. His love was never real and in my foolish attempt to get him back, I threw away Zafar like a useless toy. He was the one I should have loved all along but I was blinded by my feelings for Balraj. Over the years I have come to understand that I was never happy with Balraj nor could I have ever been. Being with my girls, singing and dancing with them brings me joy. But I was never as happy as during the moment that my son – this man who had rightfully hated me all his life – came to save me.”

The memory made Roop’s heart constrict with pain. “But we didn’t save you. You chose to stay behind. You chose to die.”

“Because it was the right thing to do,” Bahaar agreed. “But this is not what mattered. That Zafar came into my house and that he had love for me in his eyes for the first time ever, this is the moment I will forever cherish.” She smiled. “He had forgiven me all my mistakes. I had chosen before that I would stay with my Hindu girls even if it meant death but I realized in that moment that I could finally die in peace. Because Zafar had absolved me of all my sins.”

Despite the weight of those words Roop had to smile. “That is a beautiful thought. And I’m glad that you two found your way towards each other in death.”

“Thank you for your kindness, my dear.” Bahaar’s eyes were soft with affection. “Now don’t let my Zafar wait too long for you. Go to your husband.”

Roop nodded and she turned towards the exit of the house, the one leading to the pond separating it from the noisy streets. There was still nothing but white light but Roop walked towards it confidently, her thoughts on her wonderful husband as she crossed the threshold.

When the light faded, she was no longer in the city. Instead she was standing in front of their old mansion in Husnabad, the one she had come into as a bride. She could barely remember anything from that day as she and Dev had been too lost in their own sadness to notice much from the ceremony. Years later she and Dev had been able to laugh about it; that neither of them had looked at each other while uttering the sacred words tying their lives together.

Back then the house had felt like a cage but now the sight filled her with joy. She almost ran up the steps, raising her hand to knock but before she could do so, a familiar face opened the door for her.

Satya looked as beautiful as ever in her white sari, a golden plate with candles in one hand. She smiled as she dipped a finger into the centre and applied the bindu to Roops’ forehead. “Namaste, Roop. We have waited for you for so long.” She chuckled. “It is rather fitting that you chose to visit us on Diwali.”

Roop faltered in her steps. She was certain that it was in the middle of April. How much time had passed here? “It is Diwali?”

Satya shrugged her shoulders before stepping aside to welcome the younger girl in. “It is Diwali for us. Wherever you go next, it might be Eid there or maybe Christmas.”

“I see,” a confused Roop replied to the cryptic answer. But all thoughts were wiped from her mind when she reached the staircase and saw the person waiting atop.

Dev was wearing a white kurta with a subtle pattern woven into the fabric. His hands were clasped behind his back, giving him a regal look but his expression was gentle.

“Dev!” Roop exclaimed and her heart was swelling with love for her husband. He had died seven years prior to her and seeing him now was almost too much to handle. Just like Bahaar and Satya he looked the same he had done the first time they had met.  He was descending the stairs in for him unusual hurry and Roop met him halfway, embracing him tightly. “I’m so glad to see you again, Dev.”

“As am I,” he whispered into her hair, his fingers stroking soothingly long her back. “I was happy with Satya and baba here, but without you it felt incomplete.”

Roop tensed when she was reminded of the choice she had to make. She needed to be with Zafar so badly but she didn’t want to hurt her husband. “Dev, I… I can’t stay. Not forever.”

He didn’t seem surprised at all. “Of course you can’t. And I wouldn’t think of asking you too. I know that your true happiness lies elsewhere.”

Roop pulled back to look up at his face. She saw nothing but understanding in his deep brown eyes. “And you are okay with that?”

Dev cupped her face and his lips were stretching into a little smile. “Of course I am, how could I not be? Satya is here with me, isn’t she?”

Roop’s eyes drifted towards her husband’s first wife who was watching them quietly. Her eyes were full of love just like Dev’s. Roop found herself nodding, her voice quiet when she responded. “Of course she would be, I never expected anything else. She is your first love.”

“Just like Zafar is yours,” Dev responded. “I know that you love me, Roop. You don’t need to fear that I would object to your choice. Our feelings for each other are true and just as deep but in a very different way. Zafar is your true love, your soulmate just like Satya is mine.”

A heavy weight seemed to lift off Roop’s chest and she hugged Dev once again. “Thank you. For everything.”

She could feel him smiling into her hair. “You’re welcome.”

For a long moment they stayed in each other’s arms, both unwilling to let go. But eventually the longing to finally see her beloved again became too much and Roop pulled back. She knew now that Dev wasn’t going anywhere and she would be able to come back here any time she wanted.

Her eyes drifted to the figure she could see atop the staircase. Balraj was watching them quietly, his face torn between relief at seeing her here and mistrust because he must know as well where she intended to go. Where she intended to spend her lifetime.

Roop held the older man’s gaze for several seconds. Part of her wanted to walk up to him and ask for his blessing but the other part of her wanted to never see him again. It was his mistake that had started it all.

His mistake that had broken Bahaar Begum’s heart. That had caused her to abandon her only child and leave it on the streets to die. It was his mistake that had robbed Zafar of his right to have a family – a mother, a father and a brother.

His mistake that had killed Zafar in the end.

Roop was not foolish enough to think that their forbidden love had not been to blame but at least their hearts had been pure. Balraj had tainted his heart by turning away from Bahaar and lying to his wife.

With great effort she managed to tear her gaze away from the family patriarch and turn to the woman still waiting patiently at the foot of the staircase. “Thank you, Satya. For bringing me into this house and making me part of this family. Without you I would have never met this man who has become my pillar of strength.”

Satya’s smile widened and she embraced Roop as well, for the first time since they had been little girls playing in the backyard of their families’ houses. “It is I who needs to thank you. I hoped that you would become Dev’s rock after my death and I could have never asked for anything more than what you have given him over the years. It is thanks to you that I can still look him in the eyes and see my husband instead of a man who has become bitter with the experience life holds in store for us.”

Roop closed her eyes and took a breath before pulling back. When she opened them again Satya was grinning widely. “Now go to your Zafar. He has been waiting for so long.”

Suddenly Roop felt nervous again. What if Zafar had moved on? What if he didn’t want her any longer? What if…?

“Hey.” Dev took her trembling hand in his. “Stop thinking so much. I know that he has missed you every single day.”

Roop couldn’t her surprise. “You know how?”

“Because he comes visiting us every once in a while. And every now and then Satya and I come to visit him.” His eyes are full of affection when he adds fondly, “He is my brother, Roop. And you are the only one who can bring him home.”

He let her go then and Roop took a few steps towards the door entrance. She looked back over her shoulder again, finding Balraj gone. It was just Dev and Satya standing there, his arm protectively around her lower back.

“I will come back,” Roop promised them both.

They looked at each other and it was Satya who replied. “We know. And we will be waiting for you.”

Then Roop stepped over the threshold and she was once again engulfed in bright light.

She was standing in the street of Hira Mandi that was leading towards Bahaar Begum’s palace. The usually so busy street was empty and quiet. Roop took a moment to relearn the details, remembering all the wonderful memories she had of this place before it had gone down in flames and chaos.

Her feet were carrying her towards the blacksmith shop, hoping to find Zafar putting his hammer down on one of the swords. But there was nothing – no Zafar, no blacksmiths and no sword.

Her disappointment quickly turned into anxiousness. What if Bahaar and Dev had been wrong? What if Zafar didn’t want her here? She was the reason he had died after all.

Sharp needles were piercing her heart and tears were blurring her vision as she sank down in the middle of the street. Zafar was not here with her and he would never be.

Roop’s body was shaking with her sobs as she let go of all the hope and fear, the love and pain that was in her heart. And she almost missed the ray of golden sunlight illuminating the street.

Just as she finally registered the warmth on her cheek, a shadow appeared underneath the archway. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of the familiar face, one that had haunted her most beautiful dreams and most horrible nightmares alike.

Zafar was wearing a simple white kurta and salwar, similar to the one he had worn on the day he died. The curls of his black hair were blowing softly in the wind, the sunlight painting a warm chocolate brown in their ends. His mouth was quirked into that lop-sided smile she had fallen in love with and the look in his surma-adorned eyes was so intense that her knees threatened to buckle.

She took a tentative step forward, part of her fearing that the image before her would vanish like the hallucination it must be. “Zafar?”

As though Roop calling his name had awakened him from a long slumber, Zafar jerked and his eyes filled with deep emotions – relief, joy, longing and love. “You are here, Roop. Finally you are here.”

They were running towards each other and Roop threw herself into his wide open arms. He lifted her and spun her around, his face so overcome with happiness that Roop couldn’t take her eyes of it. Her own smile was so wide that her cheeks were hurting but she barely noticed it. “I’m sorry, Zafar, I am so sorry!”

She wasn’t sure what exactly she was apologizing for – for being responsible for his death, for keeping him waiting for so long…

It didn’t matter, she was finally with him.

“It’s fine,” Zafar whispered as he set her down again, his arms wrapped around her back. He leaned forward until their foreheads were touching and she couldn’t see anything but those intense, brown eyes that shone with love whenever he looked at her. “You found me. And now we can both go home.”

Bahaar had said that Zafar was with her oftentimes. But Roop had found him here in the streets of Hira Mandi. “Where is ‘home’?” she asked him with honest confusion.

The sparkle of wild joy in Zafar’s eyes softened into devotion. “My home is you, _meri jaan_. I will go wherever you take me to. And I will not leave your side until you ask me to, even if the whole world wants to fight me.”

Roop’s heart swelled with relief and gratitude. “Then you will have to wait forever. Because I will never send you away again.”

Zafar’s mouth curled into an amused grin. “I take that as a promise. And I will hold you to it.”

Roop had meant to reply but her desire to kiss him and finally feel his lips for the very first time became too overwhelming. As if he could read her thoughts, his eyes dropped towards her parted lips and his voice was barely above a whisper when he asked, “May I?”

Instead of replying Roop was the one to bridge the last distance between their mouths. When their lips finally touched, electrifying heat surged through her whole body and without thinking she parted them to let him in. Their first kiss was much gentler and coyer than Roop had imagined given his history with women but she felt all the more cherished for his care.

One of his hands had curled possessively around the back of her neck to hold her in place though Roop had no intention of pulling back. His tongue was probing and teasing her before eventually claiming her mouth with the same feral intensity he displayed in everything he was doing.

He pulled away for a second, just enough to whisper into her ear. “You are mine, Roop, mine alone. And I will never let you go again.”

And Roop knew in every corner of her heart that this time it was true. This moment would be forever.

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this and want me to continue writing stories, please leave feedback in the form of comments and/or kudos. Thank you.


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